Naperville’s Indian Community Outreach program to offer scholarship to Indian students

Chicago, Illinois: The Naperville Indian Community Outreach (ICO) has brought a great opportunity for the students of Indian origin who made their mark in the fields of academics, Sports, Arts (Visual, Film, Music, Dance, Digital Arts, Painting, Photography, Poetry, Drama, Theater etc.), Leadership, and Community Service. The Lotus Excellence Awards by ICO will be held on April 21, 2016.

The press release issued in this regard stated that applicants to be selected for the award should have good academic background with a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a scale of 4.0 or 4.0 on a scale of 5.0. The cash value set for each award is $500. The submission of applications for the award will take place till April 4th, 2016.

Krishna Bansal, Chairman of the India Community Outreach, said: “The primary mission of ICO is to embrace, preserve, and promote the Cultural Heritage and contributions of Indian-Americans while educating them to get involved with the City of Naperville.”

Krishna Bansal, Chairman of the India Community Outreach.

Each award category can hold multiple recipients. The press release further said that those eligible and encouraged to participate in the event are the students of School District 203, 204 or residents of Naperville studying at Private Schools/Home Schools/IMSA.

Selected applicants will get notified by April 15th, 2016 and the award presentation will take place on April 21st, 2016.

The Chairman of ICO also advised students of Indian origin to come in large numbers and desired full participation by them to submit applications for the ICO’s Lotus Excellence Awards.

Saily Joshi, an ICO Board Member, suggested the participants for the award to carefully fill the applications and in entirety since failure to do so will result in getting disqualified from the selection process.

Another ICO Board Member Smita Bhatia stated that additional information about the Lotus Excellence Award can be had on www.napervilleindian.com. “The students may email their queries, if any, to studentaward@napervilleindian.com”, she added.

Chicago is one of the major cities of the United States, situated in the Illinois state. It is the largest city in the Great Lakes Megalopolis. This metropolitan region is home to a huge Indian community.

A host of home break-ins have occurred in Chicago recently, leaving residents concerned for their safety. On November, 3, two masked men broke into a home in Back of the Yards which was occupied by three adults and a young child. They then callously stole a number of personal effects and set the property on fire before fleeing the scene. Meanwhile, a series of thefts have been reported in the Portage Park neighborhood. Thankfully, these types of losses are usually covered by your home insurance policy. However, extra precautions should be taken by homeowners looking to fight back against Chicago’s home thieves.

Sadly, the two intruders who set light to the South Damen property have not yet been caught. Pixabay

Safeguarding your home with a firearm

The two men who entered the property on South Damen Avenue were armed with a handgun which was used to strike the 56-year-old male occupant of the property. It’s in cases like this where homeowners can utilize their own firearms to protect both themselves and their property. Illinois state law permits individuals to keep guns in their home so long as they hold a valid FOID card. In October, a 71-year-old Chicago homeowner used his firearm to shoot an intruder in the hand, before the police turned up and arrested the suspect. Police confirmed that the elderly shooter would not face charges as he had a concealed carry license.

Make life difficult for burglars

It is not yet known how the masked duo broke into the family home in Back of the Yards. However, one of the simplest ways to prevent thieves from breaking into your property is to make it difficult for them. Safewise states that the average burglary takes just 10 minutes to complete as intruders want to be in and out as quickly as possible to reduce the risk of being caught. It’s best to avoid glass doors and surrounds as these are easily broken into. Similarly, don’t provide access to a criminal in the form of a large pet flap on your door. Additionally, you should always ensure that your home’s doors and windows are secured – even on hot night.

American flag waves beside CCTV cameras. VOA

Hook up security cameras

Sadly, the two intruders who set light to the South Damen property have not yet been caught. Following the break-in, theft and subsequent fire, the pair reportedly ran away in an unknown direction and the local police and investigating the incident. However, one way to deter burglars is to hook up security cameras around your home. Studies show homes with security cameras are 300% less likely to broken into. This is because security cameras increase the risk of a criminal being caught after they’ve committed their crime as high-quality images will be released of them. Therefore, they are less likely to choose your home as a target, especially if you stick signs up outside your home stating that 24/7 video surveillance is in use.

With a spate of home break-ins occurring in Chicago recently, homeowners are rightly worried about their safety. But by keeping a firearm in your home, using security cameras and by making your home difficult to break into, you’ll be better protected than ever before.